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Gamemastering
Gamemastering The Role of the Gamemaster The Gamemaster is storyteller and referee, creator of terrible threats against the galaxy, secret master of the villainous, criminal, and ruthless, and hidden protector of the brave. The GM's responsibilities include several important tasks; each of these is outlined in this section. Creating Adventures As the GM, your primary role in the game is creating and presenting adventures in which the other players can play their heroes. To accomplish this, you need to spend some amount of time before the game preparing your stories. This is true whether you create your own adventures or use published ones. Creating adventures takes time. Many GMs find this creative process the most fun and rewarding part of being a Gamemaster. Creating interesting characters, settings, plots, and challenges to present to your friends can be a great creative outlet. In fact, creating good adventures is so important that it receives its own section in this chapter. Teaching the Game Sometimes, but not always, it's the GM's responsibility to teach newcomers how to play the game. This isn't a burden; it's a wonderful opportunity. Teaching other people how to play provides you with new players and allows you to set them on the path to becoming top-notch roleplayers. It's easier to learn to play with someone who already knows the game. Players who are taught by a good teacher in a fun game are more likely to stick with the hobby over the long haul. Use this opportunity to encourage new players to become the sort of gamers you want to play games with. Here are a few pointers on teaching the game: * You need to know the character creation rules so that you can help new players build characters. Have each player tell you what sort of hero he or she wants to play, then show the players how they can create those heroes with the Star Wars rules. If they don't know what to play, show them the five heroic classes, briefly describe each, and let them choose the one that most appeals to them. * Don't worry about teaching all the rules ahead of time. All the players need to know are the basics that apply to understanding their heroes (what hit points are, how to make attack rolls, how to use skills, and so on), and they can pick up most of this information as the game progresses. * You need to know how to play the game. As long as you know the rules, the game can move along, and the players can simply focus on their characters and how they react to what happens in the game. Have players tell you what they want their characters to do and translate those decisions into game terms for them. Teach them how the rules work when they need to learn them, on a case-by-case basis. For example, if a player wants her Jedi to use the Force, the player tells you what the hero attempts and you tell her what die to roll, which modifiers to add, and what happens as a result. After a few times, the player will know what to do without asking. Providing the Backdrop The Gamemaster is the creator of his or her own campaign. Even though you'll be basing your adventures in the Star Wars universe, it's still your campaign. Consistency is the key to creating a backdrop that feels real to the players. When the heroes go back to Mos Eisley for supplies, they should encounter some of the same characters they met before. Soon, they'll learn the cantina owner's name - and she'll remember them as well. Once you've achieved this level of consistency, however, provide an occasional change. If the heroes come back to have their starfighter repaired again, they may discover that the man who ran the starport went back home to Corellia, and his nephew now runs the family business. That sort of change - one that has nothing to do with the heroes directly, but which they'll notice as real themselves. It's not just a flat backdrop that exists only for them to battle stormtroopers or the villain-of-the-week. Determining the Style of Play While the GM provides the adventures and the universe, the players and the GM work together to create the game as a whole. However, it's the GM's responsibility to guide the way the game is played. The best way to accomplish this is by learning what the players want and figuring out what you want as well. Many styles of play exist, but a few are detailed below. Blast 'Em All! The heroes blow open the blast door, fight the stormtroopers, and rescue the princess. This style of play is very straightforward. It's fun, exciting, and action-oriented. Very little time is spent on developing personas for the heroes, engaging in roleplaying encounters, or mentioning situations other than what's going on in the adventure. If you're running this type of game, let the heroes face obviously evil opponents and meet obviously helpful characters. Don't expect heroes to anguish over what to do with prisoners. Don't bother too much with credits earned or time spent recovering. Do whatever it takes to get the heroes back into the action as quickly as possible. A hero's motivation does not need to be much more than a desire to fight evil (and maybe acquire credits). Rules and game balance are important in this style of play. Having heroes with combat ability greater than that of their companions can lead to unfair situations; the more powerful heroes can handle more of the challenges, and this their players have more fun. If you're using this style, be mindful about adjudicating rules. Think long and hard about additions or changes that you want to make. Immersive Storytelling The Galactic Senate is threatened by political turmoil. The heroes must convince the senators to resolve their differences, but can only so so after they've come to terms with their own differing outlooks and agendas. This style of gaming is deep, complex, and challenging. The focus isn't on combat, but on talking, developing in-depth personas, and character interaction. Whole gaming sessions may pass without a single blaster being fired. In this style of game, most characters should be as complex and richly detailed as the heroes - although the focus should be on personality, not game statistics. Expect digressions about what each player wants his or her hero to do, and why. Buying spare parts might be as important an encounter as fighting battle droids. (And don't expect the heroes to fight the battle droids at all unless their heroes have good reason to do so.) Heroes will sometimes take actions against their players' better judgment because "that's what a hero would do." Adventures deal mostly with negotiations, political maneuverings, and character interaction. Players may even talk about the "story" they're collectively creating. Quoting the rules is less important in this style of play. Since combat isn't the focus, game mechanics take a back seat to hero development. Skills take precedence over combat bonuses, and even then, the numbers don't have to be absolutes. Feel free to change things to fit the players' roleplaying needs, perhaps even streamlining the combat system so that it takes less time away from the story. Something in Between Most campaigns are going to fall between these two extremes. There's plenty of action, but there's also a plot line and interaction between heroes and nonheroic characters. Players develop their heroes, but they're eager to get into fights as well. The "in between" style provides a nice mixture of roleplaying encounters and combat encounters. Even in combat missions, you can present characters who don't need to be killed. Instead, you can interact with them through diplomacy, negotiation, or a simple conversation. Adjudicating the Rules When everyone gathers around the table to play the game, the Gamemaster is in charge, That doesn't mean that you can tell people what to do outside the boundaries of the game, but it does mean that you're the final arbiter of the rules within the game. Good players always recognize that you have the ultimate authority over the game mechanics. Good GMs know not to change or overturn an existing rule without a good, logical justification so the players don't grow dissatisfied. This means that you need to know the rules. You're not required to memorize every rule, but you should have a clear understanding of where to find rules when you need them. Often a situation arises that isn't explicitly covered by the rules. In such a situation, it's the GM who needs to provide guidance as to how it should be resolved. When you come upon a situation that doesn't seem to be covered by the rules, consider the following: * Look to any similar situation that is covered in the rules. Try to extrapolate from what you see presented there and apply it to the current circumstance. * If you have to make something up, stick with it for the rest of the campaign. (This is called a "house rule".) Consistency keeps players satisfied and gives them the feeling that they are adventuring in a stable, predictable universe, not in some random, nonsensical place subject only to the GM's whims. * When in doubt, remember this handy rule: Favorable circumstances provide a +2 circumstance bonus to any d20 roll; unfavorable circumstances impose a -2 penalty. You'll be surprised how often this "GM's secret rule" solves problems. Keeping the Game Balanced Game balance ensures that most hero choices are relatively equal. A balanced game is one in which one hero doesn't dominate over the rest because of a choice that he or she made (species, class, talent, feat, Force power, weapon, and so on). It also reflects that the heroes aren't too powerful for the threats they face, yet neither are they hopelessly overmatched. Two things drive game balance: good management and trust. Good Management A GM who carefully watches all portions of the game so that nothing gets out of control helps keep the game balanced. Heroes and characters, victories and defeats, awards and afflictions, items found and credits spent - all these things must be monitored. No one hero should ever become significantly more powerful than the others. If this does happen, the others should have an opportunity to catch up in short order. The heroes as a whole should never get so powerful that all challenges become trivial to them. Nor should they be constantly overwhelmed by what they must face. It's no fun to always lose, and always winning gets boring fast. When temporary imbalances do occur, it's easier to fix them by altering the challenges than by changing anything about the heroes and their powers or equipment. No one likes to get something, only to have it taken away again because it was too unbalancing. Trust Players should trust the GM. This trust can be gained over time through consistent use of rules, by not taking sides (that is, not favoring one player at another's expense), and by making it clear that you're not vindictive toward the players or their characters. If the players trust the GM - and though you, the game system - they will recognize that anything that enters the game has been carefully considered. If you adjudicate a situation, the players should be able to trust it as a fair call and not question or second-guess you. That way, the players can focus their attention on playing their characters, succeeding in the game, and having fun, trusting their GM to take care of matters of fairness and realism. They also trust that you will do whatever you can to make sure that they can enjoy playing their heroes, potentially succeed in the game, and have fun. If this level of trust can be achieved, you'll have a greater freedom to add or change things in your game without worrying about the players protesting or scrutinizing every decision. Handling Unbalanced Heroes Sometimes, the unexpected happens. The heroes may defeat a villain, foil an unstoppable escape plan, and steal a custom starfighter you never intended to gall into their hands. Or, even more likely, the combination of some new acquisition with an item or power a hero already has will prove unbalancing in ways you didn't foresee. Once a mistake has been made, and a hero ends up too powerful, all is not lost, In fact, it's almost never difficult to simply increase the challenges the hero faces to keep him or her from breezing through encounters. However, this solution can be unsatisfying, since the encounters can become too difficult for the other, more balanced heroes. At the same time, it's never fun to lose some aspect of your hero that turns out to be unbalancing. From the player's point of view, it's not his or her fault. You have two options: Deal with the problem in-game or deal with the problem out-of-game. Dealing with the Problem In-Game: "In-game" is a term used to describe something that happens in the story created by the play of the game. For example, suppose a hero becomes unbalanced by building a droid servant that fights better than any of the heroes in the group. (This is something that the GM shouldn't have let happen to begin with, but all GMs occasionally make mistakes.) An in-game solution might be to have an enemy scoundrel sabotage the droid, or suspicious guards might confiscate the droid the next time the heroes visit Coruscant. Whatever you do, try not to make it obvious that the situation is actually just a tool to balance the game. Instead, make it seem just part of the adventure. (If you don't, indignant players will get very angry.) Dealing with the Problem Out-of-Game: "Out-of-game" means something that happens in the real world, but has an impact on the game itself. An out-of-game solution to the problem described in the previous paragraph would be to take the player aside between sessions and explain that the game has become unbalanced because of her too-powerful droid and that things need to change or the game, and she'll work with you either in-game (perhaps donating the droid to an appropriate allied organization) or out-of-game (perhaps by erasing the droid from her hero sheet and just pretending it was never there). Be warned, however, that not every gamer is reasonable in this way. Many will not appreciate this level of intrusion on your part and will resent giving up a great ability or item their hero "earned." After an unfortunate exchange of this type, it will seem obvious and contrived if you try to balance things with an in-game solution. Running a Game Session After everything is prepared, and everyone sits down at the table, you're on. It's your show. Here are some things you should consider, at the table and before you ever get there, to help make the game run as smoothly as possible. Knowing the Players Normally, but not always, the GM is in charge of inviting players to play in his or her game. If this is the case, it's you responsibility to know and understand each of these people well enough that you can be reasonably sure that they'll all get along, work well together, and enjoy the sort of game you run. A lot of this has to do with playing style. Ultimately, you have to know the kind of game your players want to play. With players new to the game or a newly formed group, this may take a while to define. Recognize that while you're in charge, it's really everybody's game. The players are all there, coming back session after session, because they trust that you'll help them have a fun and rewarding experience. Table Rules One thing that will help everyone, players and GM alike, to all get along will be establishing a set of rules - rules that have nothing to do with the actual game but that govern what happens with the people around the table. The following are some "table rules" issues you'll need to deal with eventually. It's best to come up with the answers before you start a regular campaign. You can establish these yourself, or you can work them out with your players. No-Show Players Sometimes a regular player can't show up for a game session. The GM and group are faced with the question of what to do with his or her hero. There are several possibilities: * Someone else runs that hero for the session (in addition to their own hero). This is easiest on you, but sometimes the fill-in player resents the task or the replaced player is unhappy with what happens to the hero in his or her absence. * You run the hero, doing your best to make the decisions that you think the hero's player would make. This might actually be the best solution, but don't do it if running a hero and running the game at the same time is too much for you and hurts the whole session. * The hero, like the player, can't be present for this adventure. This only works in certain in-game situations, but if it makes sense for the character to be absent, that's a handy way to take the hero out of the action for a game session. Ideally, the reason for the hero's absence is one that allows him or her to jump back in with a minimum of fuss when the player is available again. (The hero may have some other commitment, for instance.) * The character fades into the background for this session. This is probably the least desirable solution, because it strains everyone's suspension of disbelief. Recognize that players come and go. Someone moves away, another gets busy, and yet another grows tired of the game. They'll quit. At the same time, new players will want to join. Make sure to always keep the group at a size that you're comfortable with. The normal-sized group has four or five players (not including the GM). However, some groups are as small as two, and others as large as seven or more. You can also play the game one-on-one, with just one player and one GM, but that's a very different sort of play experience. (It's a good way to handle special campaign ideas, such as a Jedi Master's mentorship of a young Padawan learner.) If you can, try to find out from the players how long they're interested in playing. Try to get a modest commitment from them to show up on a regular basis during that time. Integrating New Players When someone new joins the campaign, his or her hero needs to be integrated into the game. At the same time, the player needs to be integrated into the group. Make sure that a new player knows the house rules and the table rules, as well as the game rules. Rules Discussion It's probably best if players don't question your rulings or establish rules, propose new house rules, or conduct discussions on other aspects of the game (aside from what's immediately at hand) during the game itself. Such matters are best addressed at the beginning or end of the session. Jokes and Off-Topic Discussions There are always funny things to be said, movie quotes, good gossip, and other conversations that crop up during the game, whether they're inspired by what's going on in the session or completely extraneous. Decide for yourself (and as a group) how much is too much. Remember that this is a game and people are there to have fun, yet at the same time keep the focus on the action of the heroes so the whole session doesn't pass in idle talk. Working with the Players Two players want the same newfound item. Each thinks his character can use it best or deserves it for what he's done. If the players can't find a way to decide who gets it, you will have to arbitrate or impose a solution. Or, worse, one player is angry with another player for something that happened earlier that day outside the game, so now his hero tries to harass or even kill the other player's hero. The GM shouldn't sit back and let this happen. It's up to you to step in and help resolve conflicts like that. As GM, you're both a master of ceremonies and an umpire during the game. Talk with the arguing players together or separately outside the game session and try to resolve the conflict. Make it clear as nicely as you can that you can't let anyone's arguments ruin the game for other players, and you won't tolerate real-world hard feelings affecting the way characters within the game react to each other. Another case is when a player gets really mad when you rule against him. Again, be firm but kind in telling him that you try your best to be fair. You can't have angry outbursts spoiling everyone's else's fun. Settle the matter outside the game session. Listen to the player's complaints, but remember that you're the final arbiter. By agreeing to play in your game, that player has also agreed to accept your decision's as GM. Sometimes one player's actions ruin the fun for everyone. An obnoxious, irresponsible, troublemaking player can make the game really unpleasant. Sometimes he gets others' heroes killed because of his actions. Other times he stops the game with arguments, tantrums, or off-topic conversations. Or he might keep everyone from playing by being late or not showing up at all. Ultimately, you should get rid of this player. Just don't invite him next time. Don't play the game with someone that you wouldn't enjoy spending time with in another social setting. Decide how many players you want in your game and stick with it. If someone leaves, try to get a new player. If someone new wants to join an already full group, resist the urge to let him or her in unless you're sure you can handle the increased number of players. If there are too many players, consider dividing them into two groups that play at different times. If there are too few, you might want to recruit more or have each player play more than one hero. (It's good to have at least four heroes on a mission team.) If one player dominates the game and monopolizes your time with her hero's actions, the other players will quickly grow dissatisfied. Make sure everyone gets his or her turn. Also, make sure each player gets to make his or her own decisions. Overeager or overbearing players sometimes try to tell the others what to do. If one player insists on controlling everything, talk to him outside the game session and explain that his actions are making things less fun for everyone. Metagame Thinking "I figure that there'll be a lever on the other side of the chasm that extends the bridge," a player says to the others, "because the GM would never create a trap that we couldn't deactivate somehow." That's metagame thinking. Any time the players base hero actions on logic that depends on the fact that they're playing a game, they're "metagaming." This activity should always be discouraged, because it detracts from real roleplaying and spoils the suspension of disbelief. Surprise your players by foiling this mode of thinking. Maybe there is a lever on the other side of the chasm - but it might be malfunctioning. Keep your players on their toes, and don't et them second - guess you. Tell them to think in terms of the game universe, not of you as the GM. In the game universe, someone put the trench in the Death Star for a purpose. Figure out the hows and whys for what they have done. The heroes will need to do the same. In short, where possible, encourage the players to employ in-game logic. Confronted with the situation given above, an appropriate response from a clever hero is, "I figure there'll be a lever on the other side of the chasm that extends the bridge, because you'd have to be able to cross from either side." In fact, this is wonderful - it shows smart thinking as well as verisimilitude in the game universe. Recapping "Last time, you had just discovered the secret entrance to the Imperial shield generator on the forest moon of Enfor. We ended the session with you on a nearby ridge overlooking the entrance. Arani suffered a terrible wound while fighting the biker scouts. Vor'en wanted to go straight to the entrance and shoot it out, but the rest of you talked him into helping you find a suitable place to watch and plan. What do you want to do? In the middle of an ongoing campaign, recapping activity from the previous session at the start of a new session often helps establish the mood and reminds everyone what was going on. In most games, heroes continue what they're doing from day to day (or even hour to hour), but most players (in the real world) have several days of real time between game sessions. Some players might forget important details that will affect their decisions if they don't get reminders. Of course, that means that you, as the GM, need to keep notes of what happens so you don't forget, either. At the very least, jot down a few sentences about what's going on at the end of each game session. Leave your notes where you can find them right away at the beginning of the next session. You'll probably find that, as a GM, you tend to think about the game between sessions more than the other players do, and thus you'll remember more details. You'll quickly get to the point where you won't forget what happened in past sessions, especially if the adventures you're currently working on build off those event. Setting the Pace The pace of the game determines how much time you spend on a given activity or action taken by the heroes. Different players enjoy different paces. Some search every room they come across, but some think doing that is not worth the game time. Some roleplay every encounter, while some want to skip on to the "good bits." Do your best to please the group, but when in doubt, keep things moving. Don't feel that it's necessary to play out rest periods, replenishing supplies, or carrying out daily tasks. Sometimes that level of detail is an opportunity to develop heroes, but most of the time it's unimportant. You should decide ahead of time, if possible, how long the playing session will last. This not only allows everyone to make plans around the game but also enables you to judge about how much time is left during a session and pace things accordingly. You should always end a session at a good stopping point. Three to four hours is a good length for an evening game. Some people like to play longer sessions, usually on a weekend. Even if you normally play for shorter periods, sometimes it's fun to run a longer "marathon" session. Referencing Rules Try to look at the rules as little as possible during a game. Although the rules are there to help you, paging through the book can slow things down. Look something up when necessary (and mark things you'll need to refer to again with a bookmark), but recall a rule from memory when you can. Even if you're not exactly correct in your recollection, the game keeps moving. Cheating (And Player Perceptions) Terrible things can happen in the game because the dice just go awry. Everything might be going fine, when suddenly the players have a run of bad luck. A round later, half the heroes are down for the count and the other half almost certainly can't take on the opponents that remain. If everyone dies, the campaign might very well end then and there, and that's bad for everyone. Should you stand by and watch the heroes get slaughtered? Or should you "cheat" and have the opponents run off, or fudge the die rolls so that the heroes still miraculously win in the end? There are really two issues at hand. Do you cheat? The answer: GMs really can't cheat. You're the umpire, and what you says goes. As such, it's certainly within your right to sway things one way or another to keep people happy or keep things running smoothly. It's no fun losing a beloved hero because he fell down a flight of stairs. A good rule of thumb is that a hero shouldn't die in a minor way by some fluke of the dice unless he or she was doing something really stupid at the time. However, you might not feel that it's right or even fun unless you obey the same rules the players do. Sometimes the heroes get lucky and kill an opponent you had planned to have around for a long time. By the same token, sometimes things go against the heroes and disaster befalls them. Both the GM and players take the bad with the good. That's a perfectly acceptable way to play, and if there's a default method of running a game, that's it. Just as important an issue, however, is whether the players realize that you bend the rules. Even if you decide that sometimes it's okay to fudge a little to let the heroes survive so the game can continue, don't let the players in on this decision. It's important to the game that they believe they're always in danger. Consciously or subconsciously, if they believe you'll never let bad things happen to their heroes, they'll change the way they act. With no element of risk, victory will seem less sweet. And if thereafter something bad does happen to a hero, the player may believe you're out to get him. If he feels you saved other heroes when they were in trouble, he might become disaffected with the game. When Bad Things Happen To Good Heroes Heroes suffer setbacks, lose prized equipment, and sometimes even die. It's all part of the game, almost as much as success, gaining levels, earning rewards, and attaining greatness. But players don't always take it well when something bad happens to their heroes. Remind players that bad things happen sometimes. Challenges are what the game's all about. Mention that setbacks are an opportunity to succeed later. Reassure the player of the dead hero that there are lots of opportunities for new hero types she hasn't tried yet. The dead hero's surviving allies will tell tales of their fallen comrade for years to come. The game goes on. It's rare (but possible) that an entire group of heroes can be wiped out. In such a case, don't let it end the whole game. Encourage the players to try new heroes, perhaps of a class or species they haven't played before. Even that's not really so bad - in fact, it's an opportunity for a dramatic change of pace. This new group of heroes might even be charged with retrieving the bodies of the fallen heroes for honorable burial. Ending Things Try not to end a game session in the middle of an encounter. Leaving everything hanging in the midst of combat is a terrible way to end a session. It's difficult to keep track of things such as initiative order, in game-effects, and other round-by-round details between sessions. The only exception to this is ending with a cliffhanger. A cliffhanger ending is one in which things end just as something monumental happens or some surprising turn of events occurs. The purpose is to keep players intrigued and excited until the next session. A cliffhanger ends a session right before an encounter begins, prior to initiative checks, and you pick up the action with initiative checks in the next game session. If someone was missing from that session, and you had his hero leave for a while, make sure that there's a way to work his hero back in next time. Sometimes, even in a cliffhanger, this can work out well. The hero might come racing into the thick of things to help out his beleaguered friends and help save the day. Allow some time - a few minutes will do - at the end of the session to have everyone discuss what happened. Listen to their reactions and secretly learn more of what they like and don't like. Reinforce what you thought were good decisions and smart actions on their part (unless such information gives too much away for the adventure). Always end things positively. You may want to award experience points at the end of each session, or you might wait until the end of each ad-venture. That's up to you. However, the standard approach is to give out experience points at the end of each adventure, so players whose heroes go up a level have time between adventures to choose new skills, feats, and so forth. Building an Encounter For purposes of the Star Wars Roleplaying Game, an encounter is defined as an obstacle, threat, or situation (whether it be an opponent, several opponents, or a hazard) that prevents the heroes from achieving a specific goal important to the adventure. An obstacle, threat, or situation can be overcome through smart roleplaying, combat, or skill use. Persuading a crazed Force disciple to surrender might require heroes to enter difficult and perhaps life-threatening negotiations, while capturing a crime lord might require heroes to fight their way past a squad of thugs or infiltrate a crime lord's headquarters without setting off the security system. Challenge Levels Every opponent or hazard the heroes face has a Challenge Level (CL), which tells GMs how tough it is to overcome. For example, every stormtrooper has a CL, as does every wampa and garbage compactor. The more opponents and hazards the heroes face at once, the more difficult the encounter and the more experience points (XP) the heroes get for overcoming it. A challenging